Dave Ramsey’s Financial Wisdom From Proverbsדוגמה

Day 6: Gazelle Intensity!

Consider This: It takes intensity to get out of the financial hole that’s created by debt.

Until my late 20s, I didn’t know much about gazelles. There aren’t many gazelles running around Tennessee. Honestly, I never really gave them much thought—that is until I read Proverbs 6 one day during my time alone with the Lord.

Of course, any biblical reference to debt catches my eye. And that’s what Proverbs 6:1 is talking about. Now, they didn’t have credit cards or buy-now-pay-later in Solomon’s time, but they certainly knew how to go into debt. That’s what “put up security for your neighbor” means in this passage.

When the Bible offers a way to escape debt, I want to know what it is! I got really excited when I read verse 1, so I kept reading to discover the secret. But when I saw that the answer focused on gazelles in verse 5, I was a little confused.

I was looking for a great spiritual principle about debt in the Bible—and God gave me animal metaphors. Really?

God must have known I needed some help, because He gave me a little more insight later that day. I was watching a nature documentary, and guess what showed up? Gazelles! They were out in a field of grass, just relaxing and eating. But of course, you know the gazelles weren’t out there alone! Before long, Mr. Cheetah showed up looking for lunch. Suddenly, God had my attention.

The cheetah sprang into the clearing, and the gazelles took off in a dozen different directions. Now, a gazelle can’t outrun the world’s fastest land animal, but it can zigzag around long enough to wear him out. And that’s exactly what happened.

I learned that cheetahs rarely win these chases. Why? The cheetah is just looking for lunch, but the gazelle is focused on doing whatever it takes to survive. The reality is that a cheetah only catches a gazelle about once in 19 attempts. That’s what I call gazelle intensity!

That documentary helped me understand the gazelle reference in Proverbs 6:5. The only real way to beat debt is to be intense! You’ve got to work hard. You’ve got to fight for survival. You’ve got to run for your life!

The truth is, you will never wander out of debt. You won’t stroll out. It won’t happen by accident. And the government is not going to save you from your debt. You only get out debt if you set your eyes on the goal and attack your debt with gazelle intensity! You’ve got to want to get out of debt.

We all need a plan for our money. That’s why we created Financial Peace University to teach people how to handle money God’s ways. If you’re interested in getting gazelle intense and learning how to get rid of debt, manage your money, and spend and save wisely, visit fpu.com to learn more about starting your own money journey or bringing a financial discipleship ministry to your church.

Reflection Question: What’s keeping you from getting gazelle intense and working to get out of debt?